A big thank you to Cal Coast Web Design for sharing these great email marketing tips!

Today we sat in on a webinar with Inman about email marketing (#25emailtips), and some of the do’s and  don’ts.  Inman is a real estate focused company; however, these tips can be molded to any type of business model.  Cal Coast is constantly getting asked about email campaigns and the best strategies, so here are some tips and suggestions to make your email campaigns more effective!

1. Email is longest lasting and most private social network.  Mailchimp is a good email marketing company if you would like to get started for low cost and high quality.
2. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday emails have the best open rates.
3. 2-4 pm send times have the best open rates.  People actually open when works slows down and after lunch.  In the morning they usually just delete.
4. Average email open rate is 18%.  You have a 4% better open rate if you send that email through a social network by tagging, etc.
5. Emails should come from YOU.  Don’t put just a company or generic signature.
6.  1st emails have a 25% open rate.  4th email has a 5% open rate.  ABG – Always Be Growing your email list so the funnel is consistently sending to the newer people and you have more           opens.
7.  Chop up your database.  Segment segment segment for the best response.
8. Link to VIDEOS (25% clickthrough!) and BLOGS.  Consumers like to click and watch or read more.
9. Text links outperform buttons.  Only use buttons for special promotions because readers become numb to regular buttons.
10. More links = more clickthroughs.  This decreases remove requests as well because there is usually a little something  for everyone.
11. Subject lines that work for replies:  Did I drop the ball?  How’s the search going?  Did you get my  message?  Have headlines that say I care, I’m here, I didn’t forget about you.
12. Focus on relationship conversion.  Be valuable, be relevant.
13. Emailium.com – search through past email campaigns by company, subject, etc.  What a great resource!!
14. Subscribe to the best of the best in your industry.  Learn from the experts, see what they are doing!
15. Consider mobile.  Open rates on mobile are already winning over desktop and webmail.  Make sure the links in your email look good on mobile.
16. Mobile devices show 25 Characters in subject lines. Don’t be too long and wordy!
17. TEST with Litmus.com – put your email into a system and see how it looks on every mobile device and every email platform.
18. Use a multi touch welcome.  Instead of just one autoresponder, send 3 over 20 days.  (1) Welcome, (2) highlight one of the best features on your site, (3) did you know … then subscribe them to your normal newsletter.  Researched showed an increase of 63% over the 1 & done autoresponder.
19. Facebook registration box.  It’s in Facebook tools.  There is an email opt in form from Facebook that will  already have the email filled out when a visitor gets there.  This will work inside of Facebook or inside of your website Facebook feed.  It shows their registered friends too!!
20. Get your OWN inbox in order.  Unroll.me works for Gmail, Yahoo, and many old email lists you want to quickly unsubscribe from.

Wow  – very interesting stats and info!!  Internet Marketing has so many angles, so make sure that your email campaigns are not neglected!  If you need any help setting up your HTML template, your copywriting, your lists, or your call-to-action buttons on email campaigns don’t hesitate to contact Cal Coast Web Design – we’re here to help!

Angie Weeks – Founder

Cal Coast Web Design

21092 Bake Pkwy 100

Lake Forest, CA

http://www.calcoastwebdesign.com

888-281-7665

Welcome to guest blogger, Cristophe Salon Newport Beach. Today they are sharing some great tips for business owners!

In today’s economy, it is not always easy to recruit new clients; this is why it is extremely important to ensure our current clients continue to come back for one of our services, including cut and style, color, make-up, skincare and nails. You may be asking yourself how we guarantee that our clients come back for more, every time. We have included a list of tips that small business owners, especially those in the luxury lifestyle industry, should use to not only ensure clients feel comfortable, but also to provide a distinctive environment with incomparable five-star services that keeps clients coming back.

Significance: Without our clients, Cristophe Salon Newport Beach does not exist. That’s why every new client who walks through our doors is treated to a one-on-one consultation with Cristophe Salon Newport Beach owner, Scott. From there, the client is connected to the colorist and stylist who best suits their needs and personality, or the client can choose to have Scott take care of them himself. We make sure every client feels important and is always treated to the best service possible. Word of mouth travels far, and can hurt or help your brand.

People: According to the City University of New York, salon customers establish loyalty to the hair stylist, not to the salon. This is why it is essential to build a winning team of professionals who best represent your brand, culture and product or service. The people who power your organization are one of the most important investments you will make as a business owner.

Feedback: When a customer is not satisfied with the services you have provided, use the feedback as an opportunity to show your customer, either by giving them a complimentary service or discounted offer on their next visit, that you appreciate their business and would like to provide them with another opportunity to experience your business as it was meant to be experienced. On the flip side, when a client offers you positive feedback, ask them to share that feedback on Yelp or another online review site. Leverage the compliments to promote and grow your business.

What unique programs or services have you implemented to retain clients? Leave a comment below to share your best practices.

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OC Business Owners: you have the opportunity to establish a new client and a long lasting relationship by reaching out to the new resident population  shar.es/rXHqC

Need more exposure for your small business? Advertise with OCRG and Welcome Express!

By Melinda Stone, Founder and Managing Partner of Welcome Express, Inc.

Small business advertising is a science and an art. Companies often miss the fundamentals of advertising. Regardless of the size of your business an understanding of the laws of advertising can reap huge rewards. According to Small Business Administration, a reaonable percentage of an entrepreneur’s gross sales should be budgeted for advertising. But such a small business advertising budget can only help if you understand the laws of advertising. According to noted small business expert, Darrell Zahorsky, there are 6 Laws of Small Business Advertising Success

1. Use One Message: A high response rate ad usually conveys a single message. NordicTrack’s message of the “World’s Best Aerobic Exerciser” was simple and compelling. Your small business advertising needs to quickly communicate its core message in 3 seconds or less. If you are fearful and overwhelmed by technology, which computer book do you buy? “DOS for Dummies” began a best-selling phenomena because its message was easily understood and to the point.

2. Add Credibility: It has become human nature to distrust advertising. Claims need to be real and credible. Roy H. Williams, best-selling author of the “Wizard of Ads” says, “Any claim made in your advertising which your customer does not perceive as the truth is a horrible waste of ad dollars.” NordicTrack added enormous credibility from a University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse research study, ranking the cross-country ski exerciser first in the areas of weight loss, body fat reduction, and cardiovascular fitness. Ivory soap’s advertising success was attributed to its credible statement that ivory soap is the 99-44/100% pure.

3. Test Everything: Large businesses have a greater margin to waste capital and resources without testing advertising. Small businesses do not have the luxury. Use coupons, codes, and specials to measure the headline, timing, and placement of your ad. Test only one item at a time and one medium. Testing can be as simple as asking every customer for several weeks how they heard of your business.

4. Be Easy to Contact: Every single brochure, box, email and all company literature should have full contact information including: website and email address, phone and fax numbers, and company address. It seems simple but is forgotten by most companies. At NordicTrack, every box a ski machine went into had full contact information and the “World’s Best Aerobic Exerciser” tagline. Be everywhere.

5. Match Ads to Target: Successful business advertising speaks to one target market only. At NordicTrack, the ads were tailored to each market. An ad in a medical publication preached the cardio-vascular benefits of cross-country skiing to heart patients. Ads in women’s magazines discussed the weight-loss and calorie burn from cross-country skiing. Focus the message to the target group.

6. Create Curiosity: Successful business advertising does not sell a product or service. NordicTrack’s ads sold the free video. Once a potential customer watched the video, they contacted the company for more information. The end result, millions of dollars of sales. Create ads that generate interest and make the customer want more information. Having a poor response is not the medium’s fault. Often the problem is the message. Small business advertising is not a quick fix solution to marketing your company. It takes planning, testing and constant exposure to have an impact on your small business. Done correctly, small business advertising can be a winning strategy.

Welcome Express offers effective advertising options and loves to help Orange County Businesses!

Remember Notepad – the Microsoft app?

By: John S. Pitts

I like to refer to myself as a proficient typer, but I by no means can keep up with my brain. Realistically, I would say that I am capable of typing 80 words per minute with about 85-90 percent accuracy. However, my brain works more rapidly than that. Over the years, one thing that I have found to be particularly frustrating is when typing letters, documents for seminars, or speeches, Microsoft Word can be incredibly cumbersome with all of its auto correcting, spell checking, formatting and paragraphing – it seems overly complicated. For those who have a relatively short attention span (like me) the feedback Microsoft Word gives can be distracting to one’s thought process.

A couple years ago, I started typing all documents in Notepad. The value of Notepad is incomparable to any other program, as it allows for thoughts to flow effortlessly. Notepad is a tremendously useful application and continues to be underutilized. For me, Notepad helps me from a performance perspective because I am able to spend less time worrying about formatting, punctuation and spelling and more time on content development. Once I’ve completed my thoughts, I select the entire Notepad document and paste it into Microsoft Word, to then use the functionality of Microsoft Word’s tools – such as spelling and grammar. Here are some of my best practices for using Notepad:

• To start: go to your ‘Accessories; ‘ if you have Windows 7 or Vista, type ‘Notepad’ in the search box and hit ‘enter.’
• To adjust font: go to ‘Format’ and select ‘Font.’
• To insert a time stamp: go to ‘Edit’ and select ‘Time and Date;’ you can also insert a time stamp by typing ‘Fn’ and ‘F5.’
• To select all: type ‘Ctrl’ and ‘A.’
• To find a word or phrase in Notepad: type ‘Ctrl’ and ‘F.’
• To paste: type ‘Ctrl’ and ‘V.’
• To copy: type ‘Ctrl’ and ‘C.’
• To undo: type ‘Ctrl’ and ‘Z.’

John S. Pitts is the founder and president of Tekcetera, Inc., a comprehensive and cost-effective hardware, software and support technology services company that delivers peace of mind that businesses’ technology will work, every time. To learn more, call John directly at (714) 922-4250 or visit www.tekcetera.com.

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OC Business Owners: you have the opportunity to establish a new client and a long lasting relationship by reaching out to the new resident population  shar.es/rXHqC

Need more exposure for your small business? Advertise with OCRG and Welcome Express!